More Than Words Could Tell
by little princess 15
Summary: AU: Rapunzel and Eugene met when they were young little kids. They've been best friends ever since. But when time passes, Rapunzel discovers that what she feels is much more than just friendship. She loves him, more than words can tell. But life has other things planned for them. She's a princess, and he's an orphan. She's deeply in love with him, and he's confused. R&R! :)
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1: Prologue.**

**Hey there! I´m so excited to start a new story! To the ones that have read my other story "Behind the Happily Ever After" well, this is completely different. This story is slightly AU. Rapunzel was returned to her family when she was three years old, and that will change things drastically. She´ll meet Eugene in a completely different way. And Gothel is also involved in this. **

**This chapter is mostly to clear all this details. She will meet Eugene eventually (next chapter :D). So, please be patient. This will be full of fluff, romance, suspense, hurt/comfort and drama! **

**Also, I haven´t read any Tangled-related fics for a while, and I tried to make this as original as possible, so if there´s another similar story out there, I´m sorry, I swear I never tried to steal any ideas.**

**Now without farther ado, I present you: More than Words Could Tell.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Tangled.**

**Xoxoxoxo**

**Rapunzel´s POV**

I looked at my reflection in the big mirror of my bathroom. I ran my hands through my long golden locks, thinking about all the consequences that having magical hair had brought to my life. Sure there are lots of benefits from this. Like when I am sick, or injured I just have to sing the special song, and everything goes back to normal, no pain and no uncomfortable feelings. But also, there are other things that I just despise about it. Like how my parents are too overprotective over me, afraid that I might get kidnapped again because of my magical talent, just like when I was a baby. They say I was lucky that I was returned home safe and sound. And as I think about it, I try to remember how exactly I was returned here, to my true family.

I was still very little to remember with full detail how it happened, or how things were. Back when I was locked in a tower in the middle of the woods, forbidden to go out of there. Back when I thought that Mother Gothel was my mother, and I just dreamed about seeing the floating lanterns. Back when my life was a lot easier…

_**(FLASHBACK)**_

"_Rapunzel, dear, hurry up. We have to be ready by sunset." Said Mommy while packing hurriedly some clothes and food in a satchel. I didn't understand why. Was she going out again? I hoped she wasn't. I didn't like when Mommy went out and left me in the tower alone for a while, especially at night. Though I had little Pascal to keep me company, but he was too little to protect me from the bad people that Mommy talked about. I constantly feared that they might get in the tower to steal my hair._

"_What are we doing Mommy?" I asked curiously. She was packing my clothes too. Maybe, she would finally take me with her tonight! "Are you letting me go with you today?" I asked hopefully._

"_Yes, flower. We are going to travel far away from here. And we will never return. Now hurry up, there´s not much time left." She said hurriedly._

"_Okay Mommy." I replied obediently. I didn't understand why we were leaving forever, but I was so excited to see the outside that I never questioned it._

_We left by sunset. Mommy was covered in her dark cloak and she lent me another one, which covered my hair and face completely. We kept walking quickly through the dark woods for a long time. Mommy seemed nervous and quite scared. I was scared too. I would have preferred to travel the forest on morning, when I could see clearly through the big trees and maybe spot some animals. But in the dark of the night, I could barely see where my feet were dragging me. And the shadows of the trees, which reflected strange figures on the ground, weren't doing anything to calm me down. _

_Suddenly, we heard loud footsteps coming from behind us, along with loud commanding voices. I turned around and saw the shadows of some big people illuminated by a yellowish light. I turned around and saw Mommy. She looked even more scared than before, and she quickly started running through the woods, dragging me along with her. _

_The strange people started shouting at us to stop, but Mommy didn't even turn around. By that moment I was whimpering, scared at what the strange people would do to us. "Mommy, who are they?" I asked through my tears. "Keep quiet Rapunzel!" was all that she answered and kept dragging me through the woods. _

_But as much as we tried to run, the strange people caught up with us, and stopped us. They were dressed in shining golden armors, with strange golden hats over their heads, and armed with what looked like a very large knife. One of them was mounting a very big animal, which looked dangerous and menacing. _

_I started sobbing loudly, scared by the aspect of those strange people, and clutched at Mommy´s cloak tightly._

"_Who are you and what are you doing here?!" asked forcefully the man who was on top of the animal. _

"_We were just travelling, to the kingdom of Corona." Said Mommy calmly, while I hid my face against her cloak._

"_At this hour of the night?" asked the man skeptically. "Uncover yourselves please." He ordered. But Mommy protested. "Captain, we are just…" "I said uncover yourself, woman!"_

_Mommy uncovered her face letting the hood of the cloak fall down. The strange man inspected her face intently and then he looked directly at me. "Uncover the girl too please."_

_Mommy seemed reluctant at this, but after the stern glare that the man gave her, she obeyed. She gently uncovered my face, and my long blond hair fell instantly down my back. All the other men seemed pretty surprised by this, because they all had dumbstruck expressions on their faces, and most of them gasped. _

"_Gentlemen, I think that we´ve finally found the lost princess." Said the man on top of the big animal, still surprised. Mommy stiffened beside me, and kept me close to her. _

"_Exactly Captain. I was travelling to Corona to return the lost princess to their majesties." Mommy said. I didn't understand a bit of what she was saying, but I didn't say anything._

"_Yeah, sure… you´ll have to explain that to the King and Queen. Take her!"_

_Instantly, the strange people launched to Mommy and attached her wrists and ankles with some strange iron ropes. I screamed and tried to run to her, but some other men restrained me gently. I wiggled and kicked and cried, but they didn't seem to care. _

_We travelled through the forest, until we arrived to a very big house. Until we arrived, to the place where my real Mommy and Daddy lived._

_**(END OF FLASHBACK)**_

At the end, Mother Gothel explained that she had found me on the woods when I was a little baby. She had taken care of me while I grew up, and had discovered the secrets of my magical hair accidentally. She said that when she found out, she tried to hide me in the tower to protect me, from whoever might want to hurt me to get to my magical hair. She kept me with her and raised me as her own daughter but one day, while she was travelling through Corona´s village to buy some food, she saw the mural of the Royal Family, and she discovered that I was the lost princess, and that was when she tried to return me back home.

Although everyone seemed suspicious of her, my parents believed her. They were just so happy to have their daughter back, safe and sound, that they felt grateful towards her for taking care of me all that time. And they let her stay in the castle, mostly because I refused to be anywhere but near her. It was hard to think and love someone as if she was your mother, and then discover that she isn't. And seeing how much I seemed to care about her, my parents decided to make her my nanny.

I readjusted to my new life and started to be around my real parents a lot more. I stopped calling Gothel "Mommy" a few months later, but the feeling of love that I felt for her never stopped. I still loved her as part of my family. As my second mother. That´s why I started calling her Mother Gothel.

And even though I was now almost eighteen, she still cared of me in that motherly way which with she always treated me. And I still sang for her while she brushed my hair, just like I had always done.

But even though I loved Mother Gothel as my own mother, there was something strange about her. Sometimes I even thought she was obsessed with my hair or something. She cared for it as if it was the most important thing in the world.

Eugene said she was the creepiest person he´d ever met. But that was normal coming from him; they never really got along well. And now that I was thinking about it, I probably had to stop looking at myself in the mirror. I was going to see Eugene soon, and seeing my best friend was always the best part of the day.

I took one last glance, and then turned to face Pascal, my little chameleon friend, who had been with me ever since I left the tower.

"How do I look Pascal?" I asked. He raised his thumbs up in approval. And with that, I headed out of my bedroom. Just thinking about the fact that, just in a few hours, I would see the most amazing person in the world, my best friend, and hopefully, eventually, something else…

**So… what do you think? Liked it? Hated it? Want to see more and see how it gets?** **I would love to know what you think! **

**Hopefully I´ll update the next chapter soon. **

**Hope you liked it and please let me know what you think! ;D**


	2. Meeting a New Friend

**Chapter 2: Meeting a new Friend.**

**Hello there! First of all I want to thank the ones who reviewed this story and also the ones who read it! So for all of you out there who are interested in this, here´s chapter two!**

**Just a few clarifications; I know that the original age of Flynn is 28, but that would be just creepy, cause in this fic, Rapunzel would be 8 when they first met and if I left the original age, he would be 16 already! So, he´ll just be 3 years older. Hope you don't mind.**

**Also you´ll find Rapunzel a little OOC. Given the fact that she didn't spend her entire life locked up in that tower, so she won´t be as naïve as she was in the movie.**

**I think that´s all, enjoy!**

**Review Replies:**

**Umbre0n: Thanks for your review! :)**

**MyNameIsAlexandraRider: Thanks for your review. And I´m glad you think that way! What a coincidence that we had the same ideas haha, though I hope I didn't ruin the chance for you to write your story.**

**MrAndersIversen: Good to know you read this too! I was beginning to wonder were you had gone; I´d missed you in my reviews from BTHEA. Hope you like this too, and thanks for your review as always :) **

**Disclaimer: Nope, I still don't own anything.**

**Xoxoxoxo**

I walked down the hall hurriedly and arrived to the dining room, Where Mom and Dad where having breakfast. They seemed pleased to see me, though surprised at my big rush. I couldn't help it though. It had been four days since I last saw Eugene, and four days without seeing his breathtaking smile and hearing his sweet voice was like an eternity to me. Ever since he started working at the town´s armory, he had been so busy that we hadn't had time to see each other.

Today he would be out of work early, so we would meet at the village and spend the entire day together, just like the old times. I couldn't take off the huge smile plastered on my face.

"Hello Mom! Good morning Dad! Isn't it a beautiful day?" I greeted them enthusiastically, kissing them both on the cheek.

"Why, good morning darling. Why so enthusiastic today?" asked my father with a confused but also amused expression on his face.

"Are you going to see Eugene today?" asked my mother curiously, though I could sense the teasing tone in her voice. I felt my cheeks burn as she smiled at me playfully. Did she know how I felt about him?! Oh God, that would be embarrassing!

"Oh…" was all my father said as realization hit him.

"Uh… yeah… he´s having half the day off, so we´ll be spending the day together." I said quietly as I sat on the table and put a few pancakes on my plate. As I poured some milk in my glass, I started thinking about how my parents seemed to know about my true feelings for Eugene. Was I really that obvious? I hoped not… if Eugene knew… well… I didn't know what would have happened if he had noticed it already, but I wasn't ready to tell him yet.

Although we´d known each other for a long time, and knew everything about each other, he had never really shown any romantic interest towards me. In fact, I have always thought he was rather attractive. Even when I first met him. But he didn't seem surprised at all with me. Or maybe I was just too dazed by his perfect personality to even notice it.

I remember perfectly well the day I met my best friend. It was one of my most precious memories…

_**Flashback…**_

_Mom, Dad and me, were going out to the town today. I was so excited to go out, because, given the fact of my magical hair, my parents barely let me go out of the castle, so this was one of the rare occasions where I got to see the town and enjoy the outside, at least for a little while, before returning to the boring life at the castle._

_I was eight years old then, and saw the servants shoving some toys, stuffed animals and books in a carriage, along with clothes and other things. We were walking down the stairs to the courtyard, and heading inside the carriage that would take us to downtown._

"_Mom, what are they doing?" I asked Mom as I glanced curiously at the things that were in the other carriage._

"_Today we are going to a different place, sweetheart." We are going to visit the kids from the orphanage." Said Mom gently, as we stepped inside the carriage._

"_The orphanage?" I asked confused. I had never heard about an orphanage._

"_Yes sweetie, it is a place where the kids without parents or family go. They take care of them until they are old enough to support themselves. But the maids that take care of them at the orphanage can´t support everyone. They are too much for them to afford good clothes and toys, so we are going to donate these things to them." she told me gently._

_I was surprised by this. I couldn't imagine how horrible would be to not have parents, or anyone who loves you or takes care of you. Poor kids, I felt horrible for them._

"_Aw, how horrible Mom! Can we help them to have a better place to live?" I asked hopefully. But Mom gave me a sad look as she caressed my hair sweetly._

"_I´m afraid that no Rapunzel. We can only give them this toys and clothes so they will be a little more comfortable."_

"_And can we give them this things always?" I asked again. I really wanted to help them._

"_We could donate things to them every year." Said Mom as she gave me a sweet smile. _

"_Oh that would be wonderful! Do you think they´ll like it?" _

"_They will love it sweetheart."_

_Then Dad entered the carriage and we quickly parted to the town´s orphanage. We rode for a long time, passing the wealthier part of the town, until we made it to the poorest. Where the houses were a lot more humble and old. _

_I could see from the window a rather old ugly building, with a rickety old wooden door in the main entrance. The windows seemed also old and dusty, and the curtains that were barely visible from there were worn and patched._

_We stopped right in front of the building, and just then, I noticed the little dusty iron plaque, hanged next to the door. It read: "__**Town´s Orphanage."**_

_I couldn't believe that those poor kids without family lived in a place like this. They deserved a lot better._

_We got out of the carriage and made our way up the stone stairs to the front door of the orphanage. The man who was riding our carriage knocked three times on the door, and soon an old lady, with white hair tied up in a tight bun, and half-moon glasses, cracked open the door. She smiled widely at us and opened entirely the door for us to enter._

"_Oh your majesties! It´s an honor to have you here today! Come on, come on, please enter." She said merrily. As I passed I noticed the wrinkles that covered her white skin. She seemed to be a pretty good person, with a motherly expression plastered on her face._

"_The kids were truly excited to see you. They don´t usually receive any visits. We are incredibly grateful your majesties, you´re really generous. Those poor kids have nothing but what we can afford for them, and usually it isn't much." She said. Her sparkly brown eyed covered with sadness. "Come in, they´re playing in the main room. Here" She leaded us to a big old door and then opened it._

_I immediately rushed inside, wanting to make as much friends in here as possible. What I saw surprised me. There were kids of all ages and heights. From cute little babies and toddlers, to big teenagers. They were playing with the small amount of toy that the maids who cared after them could afford. They were so entertained playing happily that they never noticed us enter the room. The space was filled with chatting voices and soft giggles and chuckles from them._

_The old lady who received us cleared her throat and called for their attention._

"_Children. Children! There have come very important people to visit you! Please say hello to the Royal Family!" she said, and immediately every single kid fell silent and turned to look at us. They seemed impressed, yet excited to see us, and I immediately felt a little shy. I´d never liked to be the center of attention._

_Every single kid above two years old stood up from the place they were comfortably playing and bowed respectfully. "Hello your majesties." They all said in unison._

_I watched intently every one of them. Their clothes were old and worn out. Their bodies were thin and skinny and everyone showed the same expression of respect. Everyone but one._

_He immediately caught my attention. I didn't know why, but something of him was different. Something made him outstand from all the others._

_It was a boy. He looked about ten or eleven years old. With dark brown hair, that fell down to his eyes, but didn't cover them, those gorgeous hazel eyes that to me seemed unique. They had a mischievous twinkle in them, but if you looked more carefully, they showed a mix of emotions that I was anxious to discover. He had tanned skin, and a fairly attractive face, though at that age, I pretty much found it cute more than anything._

_I locked eyes with him for a brief moment, and he didn't seem surprise to see me standing there, like all the other kids who probably had never been so close to the __**"Royal Family". **__In fact, he seemed confident and sure about himself. He even gave me a half grin, he wasn't showing much interest in me, but he wasn't acting hostile or arrogant._

_I gave him a small smile in return, and felt a slight blush crept up my cheeks. He noticed it too, because he chuckled slightly at my shyness. And then, as fast as he had looked in my direction, he turned and started whispering to the other boy if his age next to him. I could tell they weren't talking about me; the boy didn't seem interested in me at all. I didn't know if to feel relieved that they weren´t whispering about me, or bad because interested in me enough to be in his conversation._

_Anyway, I turned away too, and noticed that while I was so busy looking at the cute boy, the old lady from the orphanage had been giving a speech about our generosity and how grateful the kids should be that we were there donating all those things. I tuned out; not really wanting to listen how idolized us that much, why couldn´t I be just as normal as anybody else and play with the children?_

_But soon, Mrs. Hopkins, the old lady who was apparently the headmistress of the orphanage, let the kids play again while she and the other maids helped our servants to carry the things that we´ve brought to the orphanage. _

_I immediately started looking for someone to befriend, and I soon found a group of girls about my age playing gleefully with some old dolls._

"_Hello!" I said cheerfully. The girls gasped when they noticed me and immediately stood up and bowed._

"_Good morning, Princess." They said politely. But I didn't like when people treated me that way. I wanted to be as normal as possible._

"_Just Rapunzel, please. And the bow is not necessary. Can I play with you?"_

"_Sure!" they said, excited to be with the famous princess._

"_What are you playing?" I asked curiously._

"_We´re playing that we are all princesses and live in a big, big castle! We´re about to go to a ball and we´re going to meet a prince that we´re going to marry." One of them explained excitedly while the others nodded in agreement. I immediately felt the need to go. A life as a princess wasn't exactly a fairytale. You had to be polite and proper, and learn and know a lot of boring things and stuff. I would have preferred to explore the outside, and see and visit other places. But sure, they thought different. I was the only one there who knew how boring it all was. Going to boring balls full of polite, smug people, living in a castle all your life without exploring new places and seeing the world, and the worse of it all, knowing that someday, you would have to marry a prince and become queen, and spend the rest of your boring life ruling a kingdom._

_After a few minutes, I found their game was extremely boring. I couldn't spend another minute there. So I politely excused myself and turned around to look for someone else to talk to. But soon, I found out that, whoever I might find there would treat me exactly the same way. As an extremely important person._

_So, I instead made my way to the little shelf full of old-looking books. I read every title, trying to find something of my interest, but I just found a lot of fairytales, where the princess was saved by the handsome prince and they married and lived happily ever after. I knew that never happened in real life. I knew exactly how was a princess´ life, so I didn't bother to even open them. But soon, at the corner of the shelf, I found an old thick book. The title read: "__**The Tales of Flynnigan Rider" **_

_That sounded interesting, something like adventure. So I quickly stretched my arm to grab it, but as soon as my hand touched the old book, another larger one did the same too, accidentally covering my hand._

_I quickly retired my hand. "Oh I´m sorry." I said as I turned to look at the owner of the other hand, and was extremely surprised to see the boy from earlier looking back at me._

"_No, I´m sorry. I didn't know you were going to read it too." He said as he took the book off the shelter. Again, I noticed how different he was from everyone else. Although he was polite, he didn't bowed or called me "Princess" once._

"_Here, take it. I´ve read it enough times anyway." He said dismissively as he handed me the book. I slowly took it, but as soon as my hands grasped the book, I found the strange urge to talk to him more._

"_So, if you have read it enough times before, you can tell me, is it good?" I asked curiously, though mainly to have a small chat with him, more than the few words that we had exchanged._

"_Well, I really like it. It´s my favorite book. It´s full of adventure, you know, travelling to incredible places, exploring the world, facing dangerous threats, stuff like that. Though I think you probably won´t like it." he said carelessly._

_I was surprised. This book was exactly what I was looking for! So why did he think I wouldn't like it?_

"_Why?" I voiced my question to him._

"_Because you´re a girl, and a princess. You sure would want to read a fairytale, or a love story." He said as if it were obvious. But I wouldn't let him think of me like that._

"_On the contrary, I find that extremely boring. Those fairytales are never true. I would prefer a book like this much more." I said firmly. He looked surprised by my response, but soon, he recovered and grinned slightly._

"_You´re different from what I thought you´d be." He said._

"_Well, you too are different from all the other people I´ve ever met." I said in return, feeling less shy than when I first saw him._

"_Is that so? Haven't you ever met a handsome young boy as me?" he said with a teasing smirk. I could tell he was trying to make me blush again, like earlier, but I wouldn't give him the satisfaction this time._

"_Nah, I´ve met plenty of those before." I said with a playful grin. And he raised an amused eyebrow at my attitude. "But I´ve never met someone who wouldn't bow or address me as "princess" when they talk to me."_

"_Oh, I´m so sorry __**Princess.**__" He said as he bowed mockingly. I giggled at this and curtsied playfully. "No problem, young man. But I don't want you to forget it ever again." _

"_Oh I wouldn't dare, your majesty." He said with a funny deep voice. And soon after, we broke into a fit of uncontrollable laughter._

"_Oh this is SO ridiculous!" I said through giggles._

"_I know, I´ve never understood why they do it." he said honestly as our laughter died._

"_So… how did you expect me to be like?" I asked curiously._

"_I don't know, a spoiled brat?" he said with a shrug._

"_Hey!" I exclaimed as I softly slapped his arm playfully. He just chuckled._

"_And, what´s your name?" I asked as I realized that I didn't know it. But he suddenly looked away and avoided my glance. _

"_Umm…" he shifted uncomfortably._

"_What is it?" I asked as I tried to look at him in the eyes._

"_It´s just… It´s ridiculous…" he said, and for the first time, I noticed a hint of shyness in his voice._

"_What´s ridiculous?" _

"_My… my name." he muttered._

"_Oh, c´mon, it can´t be that bad!" I assured him. "How am I supposed to call you then?"_

"_Eugene…" he mumbled. Then he sighed heavily and cleared his throat. "My name is Eugene Fitzherbert." He said louder now. I smiled reassuringly at him._

"_I don´t think it´s ridiculous, I think it´s unique. It makes you seem special." I said. And I really meant it. A hint of a smile appeared on his face. He looked at me and muttered a quiet "thanks." _

_I held out my hand, and said; "I´m-", but he cut me off._

"_Rapunzel, I know. Everybody knows! The famous Lost Princess." He said as he shook my hand. His hand was much larger than mine, given the fact that he was two or three years older than me, and though it was strong, it was also soft and warm._

"_Yeah, well you can call me Rapunzel. Just Rapunzel, I really don't like it when people call me Princess, or your Highness." I said honestly._

_He chuckled. "I wasn't planning on doing so." he said, and I smiled at him. I had a feeling that we would understand each other perfectly._

"_Well, if you were going to read this book too, why don't we read it together? It would be much better than reading alone, don't you think?" I said, hoping that he would agree._

"_Okay." He said simply, and we sat on the floor next to each other. He read me the book, and I found how good he was at telling stories. _

_And soon, the younger children started gathering around us to listen to his story. All the while I kept looking at him, memorizing each part of his face. I really liked him (just as a friend!). And I definitely wanted to see him again once I´d left the orphanage._

_Time passed quickly, I would say too quickly for my liking, and soon Mom and Dad were calling for me. I stood up and looked at Eugene._

"_Well, good bye! I´ll try to come tomorrow." I said as I smiled at him. He looked confused, and raised an eyebrow._

"_Why?" he asked. Now __**I **__was confused. Why what? He must have noticed my expression and soon added; "Why would you want to spend the day with a poor orphan like me? You sure have much better things to do." He said._

"_Actually, I don't have anything better to do. And I don't mind you being an orphan! Friendship is not based on that." I said firmly._

"_Does that mean we are friends?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, surely not quite believing me._

"_Of course!" I exclaimed. Then, I gave him a quick little hug. I waved at him and turned to my parents. But as I left the room, I could have sworn I saw him smiling slightly out of the corner of my eye. I could tell then, that would be the beginning of a great friendship._

**End of chapter 2! Hope you liked it, and don't forget to review so I know what you think of this!**


	3. Falling for Him

**Chapter 3: Falling For Him.**

**Hello! I want to say I´m extremely happy! Thank you all guys for your lovely reviews and comments, and also to the ones who favorite and follow, you have no idea how much I appreciate them! Hope you like this chapter too.**

**NOTE: I highly recommend that you listen to "Stay Beautiful" by Taylor Swift. It goes perfectly well with this chapter. Also you´ll find that I´m going to include some of her songs in this fic. Hope you don't mind.**

**Review Replies:**

**Guest: Thanks for your review! Hope you like this :)**

**Umbre0n: thanks again for your review! Haha I should have probably made myself clear with that about Rapunzel visiting Eugene. I figure she would ask for someone to take her there, because obviously she wouldn´t be able to go alone. Anyway I hope you like this chapter too. **

**MyNameIsAlexandraRider: thanks again for your lovely review! You have no idea how much I appreciate your opinion. Please keep giving me your thoughts and opinions ;) **

**MrAndersIversen: AW THANK YOU! As always I can´t really tell you how much I appreciate your reviews my dear friend ;) hope you like this chapter as well.**

**Patpat: thanks for your lovely review! I´m glad you think that way and I hope you like this as well. **

**Disclaimer: no, no, no, I still don't own anything.**

**Xoxoxoxo**

"Rapunzel? Dear, are you okay? You´ve been staring at your breakfast for a long time." I heard the voice of my mother say softly. I quickly snapped out of my own little world and turned to look at my parents sheepishly.

"Sorry, I just… I´m not hungry." I said as I took one last bite at the toast I had been eating earlier. "See you later!" I said over my shoulder and waved to my confused parents as I left the dining room.

I arrived at my room and immediately went to the mirror. I wanted to look special today. So I took my long blond locks out of my usual complicated braid and tried to tie it up differently. Pascal raised an eyebrow, looking at me amused through the mirror.

"Oh shut up Pascal. I don't want to look the same as always. I want him to notice a difference in me." I said to my little friend as I brushed the knots out of my hair. Pascal smirked, and chuckled at my response. But I knew what he meant. (He always notices you; you don't have to look different.)

"I know he always notices me, but… not that way…" I said, and Pascal eyed me with a hint of sadness. But suddenly, his eyes widened and he squeaked in fright, as he hid behind my neck. "What is it Pascal?"

"Oh, good morning, Flower." Said an extremely sweet voice from behind me. I jumped in surprise and turned to look at Mother Gothel.

"Oh Mother, you scared me!" I exclaimed as I hugged her.

"Oh did I? Hmm, I thought you would be ready by now. And why haven't you braid your hair?" she scolded me. She was always one for punctuality. I could tell she still believed I was going to my tutoring lessons.

"I wanted to make it different." I said as I glanced back at my reflection in the mirror.

"Well, let me help you." She said sweetly as she took the brush off my hand and started brushing my hair. As she did so, with the extra care that I always noticed whenever she touched my hair, she asked me; "Rapunzel, would you sing to me please?"

"Of course Mother." I said and started singing the healing incantation. I watched as every strand of hair turned from blond to an unnatural glowing yellow. And it spread from the top of my head to the tips of my hair. Mother Gothel gave a sigh of relief as the power made her slightly wrinkly skin turn young and pure again.

"So, what makes you want to do your hair differently today?" she asked.

"Oh… uh… no reason in particular." I lied.

"Well, I think that won´t be possible, darling. You have your first class in ten minutes. It takes too long to braid your hair."

"But Mother, today I won´t have any classes." I said trying to avoid the subject at hand.

"What? Why?"

"Because… I´m going to the town today." I said nervously.

Mother Gothel gave a sigh of frustration. "You´re going to see that boy again aren´t you?" she said disapprovingly.

"I don't see why that´s a problem." I said a little defensive.

"That boy is not good for you, Rapunzel. I´ve told you enough times." She said while she looked at me sternly. I felt a rush of frustration well up inside me. We´ve had this conversation thousand times. It always was the same.

Mother Gothel never approved of my friendship with Eugene. And to say that Eugene didn't like her was an understatement. He pretty much hated her, and I was sure Mother Gothel felt the same way. But I just couldn't decide between two people who were important for me.

"Mother… I really don't understand why you say that." I said frustrated.

"Because it´s true! You two are different, you have to understand that."

"You say that just because he´s an orphan and he´s poor! I don´t think that changes the person he is."

"But you are a princess Rapunzel! You shouldn't trust him. You don't know what are his intentions towards you."

I contained myself from crying out in frustration. How could she think of him like that?! I loved Mother Gothel dearly, but sometimes she was just too stubborn to listen. I sighed angrily and turned away from her.

"Well, my parents don´t seem to have a problem with him." I snapped crossly.

"Are you saying that my opinion is not important to you?" she asked with a hurt expression, and I instantly regretted what I´d said.

"No! Mother your opinion is also important to me." I said quickly.

"I´m just trying to protect you, Rapunzel. I really don't think you should trust him." She said.

But I knew that I could trust him with my life. And he had proven that to me enough times. I´d trusted him enough to even tell him my biggest secret. My magical hair.

_**Flashback…**_

_It had just been my thirteenth birthday, and Eugene and I were strolling around town eating some cupcakes, talking, joking, laughing and playing like two fools. He was now sixteen, and the difference between our heights was pretty notorious._

_He had changed just slightly since the day I met him. Obviously he was now much taller, but also much more muscular. The cute boy that he had been when he was elven was now replaced by a very handsome teenager. Whenever he walked by, he caught the attention of almost every young girl around the village. Though he didn't seem to notice. But I definitely noticed it. At first I just found it funny that all those girls almost drooled over him when he didn't even noticed them, but lately it had made me feel different. I felt a feeling of anger and possessiveness whenever I caught them staring at Eugene as if he was the most amazing guy in the entire world. I was so confused about it, was it… jealousy? No way! Why would I be jealous? He was just my best friend._

_I was having too much confusing feelings for my liking, so I tried to forget about them by adding some humor to my situation._

"_Watch out Eugene, if you keep walking carelessly around the town like that, you´re going to have those girls literally fainting at your feet." I said teasingly at him as we passed through a particularly narrow alley._

"_What?" he asked. Confusion covering his handsome features._

"_Those girls." I emphasized my words and pointed to the young teenage girls who were gaping at Eugene shamelessly. He looked at them, and seemed surprised to see them staring at him like that. When they noticed that he had caught them staring at him, they blushed and started whispering and giggling between them. _

_I felt like I was going to be sick. They were so stupid, acting all giggly and flirty… and there it was, that feeling just seemed to increase when Eugene gave them a charming smile and turned away, obviously feeling proud of the effect he had on them._

"_What are you smiling at, you arrogant git?!" I asked crossly._

"_What? Jealous?" he said teasingly, though he didn't know the effect that had on me. In that very moment I felt like I was going to explode of frustration. I narrowed my eyes at him and scoffed._

"_Ha! You wish. I just didn't like the fact that you were so proud of the effect you have on them. You know, they could really be interested in you, and you don't even care! But, with that charming smile that you gave them, you sure also gave them some hope." I said as I tried to find a coherent reason for my overwhelming anger._

_Though that was also truth. I definitely didn't want my best friend to turn into some arrogant jerk, just because all the girls in the village seemed to be head over heels for him._

"_Oh c´mon Blondie, I was just trying to be nice!" he said as we descended some stairs at the end of the alley. "It would´ve been worse if I just turned around and pretended that I never noticed them."_

_I was about to retort, when suddenly, my feet got tangled with my abnormally long hair, and I tumbled forward. I squealed in fright as I fell all the way down the stairs. And the cupcake with strawberry frosting that I had been eating flew out of my hand through the air. I landed painfully on the last stair and twisted my ankle, and just when I thought things couldn't get any worse, the cupcake that I had dropped, fell flat on my head, covering my hair and forehead in a mix of bread and strawberry frosting. _

_I moaned in pain as I tried to move my left foot._

"_Rapunzel! Are you okay?" asked Eugene, rushing down the stairs. His expression was a mix of concern and amusement, but his voice definitely gave him away, he sniggered and tried to cover his barely contained laughter with a fake cough._

"_It´s not funny Eugene!" I exclaimed as my eyes covered in tears, while I was trying to clean my hair._

_Immediately, Eugene´s amused expression faded, and was replaced with one of concern._

"_It´s my ankle, it hurts too much." I said, almost at the verge of tears. I wasn't used to experience pain like this, because, usually I just healed myself with my hair. Plus I had never twisted my ankle this way before._

"_Can I?" Eugene asked pointing at my feet, which were covered by my long gown. I nodded, and he gently lifted my skirt enough to be able to see my feet. He winced at the sight of it, and I whimpered in ankle, and part of my foot, was swollen and turning a deep shade of purple._

"_I think it´s broken." He said thoughtfully, probably thinking what to do to help me._

_Suddenly, I felt myself being lifted from the ground as Eugene´s strong arms held me. I squealed in fright and clutched to the fabric of his shirt. "What are you doing?!"_

"_Carrying you to the castle. You obviously can´t walk all the way there."_

_A rush of emotions spread over me as he started walking to the castle. I was terrified that he might accidentally drop me, but at the same time, I felt comforted and safe in his strong arms. Somehow, I knew he would never let me fall. _

_But it was so much more than that. I wanted the pain to go away as soon as possible, and I had the power to make it stop instantly. But there was just one little problem, Eugene didn´t know a thing about my magical hair._

_But as he carried me back to the caste, occasionally looking at me sideways, his eyes full of worry and concern, I started wondering why I´d never told him. We were supposed to be best friends, and have no secrets between each other._

"_Wait! Stop! I don´t want to go to the castle." I said as an idea struck me._

"_What?!" Eugene asked confused._

"_Would you take me to the woods instead?"_

"_C´mon Rapunzel, don't be silly. You have a broken ankle! Why would you want to go to the woods?!" he exclaimed as he looked at me like as if I had lost my mind. _

"_Eugene, pweaaze?" I cooed as I made puppy dog eyes. He always gave up with that look. And obviously this time it worked too. I saw his eyes soften and he gave a defeated sigh._

"_Alright. But if the guards think I´m kidnapping you, you´ll have to explain them what you made me do before they hang me." He joked as he turned and made his way to the bridge that lead to the woods._

_**Xoxoxoxo**_

"_You know, I really don´t understand why you haven´t cut your hair yet. It´s pretty long, a few inches won´t change anything." Eugene said as we made our way through the woods. Eugene had been here enough times already, so he knew perfectly well where he was carrying me to. On the contrary, I had been in the woods just once or twice in my life, so I had no idea where we were going. Though I was excited at the same time to be in a place where I felt truly free._

"_No Eugene, you don´t understand. I can´t cut it."_

"_Why? The creepy woman won´t let you?" he said as he finally sat me gently on the grass next to a fallen log, in a little clearing a few yards from the Kingdom. Perfect. No one would see us there._

"_Eugene! We´ve discussed this enough times. She´s not creepy."_

"_Yeah, she is. She´s obsessed with you and your hair." he said bluntly._

"_No she isn't. She´s just worried about me. Plus, she´s in charge to look after me." I said stubbornly._

"_Yeah, yeah, whatever. That doesn't answer my question."_

"_What question?"_

"_Why can´t you cut your hair?" he asked curiously._

"_Well, you´ll understand it in a minute." He raised an eyebrow and tilted his head to the side. The confusion was evident in his face._

_I shrugged and began to take my hair out of its braid. After that, I took a bunch of it and wrapped it around my injured ankle. Eugene´s utter confusion seemed to increase. He obviously though that I had gone insane._

"_Rapunzel… what are you doing?" he asked cautiously._

"_You´ll see." Was all I said._

"_You do know that it would have been better to bandage your ankle with a band and not with your hair, right?_

_I scoffed. "You don't even know what I´m going to do!"_

"_Well, that looks pretty ridiculous to me." I gave him a look that clearly said 'shut up' and it seemed to settle him down, though he still seemed really confused at this._

_I took a deep breath, and then looked at him seriously in the eyes. "Promise you won´t freak out." I almost pleaded. The fact that my best friend would probably be scared for life after what I was going to show him was terrifying. I really didn't want him to think I was some weird creepy creature._

_He gave me another wary look. "Okay…" I took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and began to sing._

_**Flower gleam and glow**_

_**Let your power shine**_

_**Make the clock reverse**_

_**Bring back what once was mine**_

_My hair started to glow in that usual glowing golden light that I was so used to see. The glow spread from the tip of my hair to the end of it. It´s glow covered my broken ankle, and I felt a tickly warm sensation spread through it. The pain instantly subsided._

_I finished the song, and slowly opened my eyes. I let the amount of hair covering my ankles fell, rebelling the soft creamy white skin of my foot. The big bruise that had previously covered it was gone, as well as the swollenness. I cautiously looked at Eugene, and my heart fell when I saw his expression._

_He was standing as far away as he could from me. Mouth hanging open, and eyes so wide open, that it seemed like they would literally pop out of its sockets at any minute. He started taking short gasps of air and making some weird choking sounds. He was about to scream when in fright when I panicked and almost shouted; "Don´t freak out!"_

_He didn't relax a bit, but he didn't scream like he was about to._

"_I-I-I-… you… how… what… what the hell was that?!" he finally manage to stutter._

"_Um… have I ever told you I have magical hair?" I asked cautiously, giving him a nervous smile._

"_Oh no, I think you forgot that little detail!" he said sarcastically._

"_I´m sorry." I said softly, so softly that I wondered if he had heard it. "It… it was complicated. My magical hair has been a gift and at the same time a curse since the day I was born." I said looking at him in the eyes._

"_But… why… how?" he stuttered, obviously trying to comprehend what was happening._

"_Remember the magical flower that saved my mom when she was pregnant?" I asked and he nodded. "Well, somehow, it´s power was transferred to me. That was one of the reasons why they kidnaped me when I was a baby." I explained. I saw as realization hit him, and he slowly started to make his way towards me again._

"_When I sing that song, my hair glows, and has the ability to heal. But if you cut it, it turns dark and loses its power." I said as I showed him the little strand of chocolate brown hair that was cut when I was a baby. He listened intently as I explained all this to him. "I couldn't tell anyone. It isn't safe for me to just tell this secret like that. It could be dangerous if the wrong person knew it." I said as I looked at him pleadingly, silently begging him to understand. He seemed to, because his face softened as he knelt beside me._

"_Don´t worry Blondie, I understand. You couldn't trust me like that." He said softly as he brushed a strand of blond hair behind my ear. I smiled at the tenderness which with he always treated me._

"_Please don't tell anyone." I begged him._

"_I wouldn't dare." He told me seriously as he smiled reassuringly at me._

_And as I looked at him in the eyes, those beautiful hazel eyes that I so much loved, and saw his sweet smile, I felt a warm feeling spread over my chest. My heart was pounding furiously, and a fluttery feeling spread over my stomach. I blushed and looked away, just like the first time I had seen him smile at me, and in that very moment, I realized that what I felt for him, for the handsome sweet boy in front of me, was much more than friendly love. No, it was so much more. It was real, pure love. Like the one I'd always read in those stupid fairytales. The one I´d never allowed myself to believe in. The one you felt for the person you wanted to spend the rest of your life with. _

_But I couldn't tell him. No, I wouldn't tell him. Just not yet. We were still too young to even be sure about our feelings. I was going to wait until we were both ready. Little did I know that it would take me years to even decide if I would ever tell him._

**And that´s how Rapunzel fell in love with Eugene. What do you think about it? Like it? Hate it? Want to see more soon? I would really love to see your comments and reviews; it helps me to know if you like it so far.**

**Hope you liked it :) **


	4. I Won't Fall in Love

**Chapter 4: I won´t fall in love **

**Hey there everyone! I must say I´m really sorry for the lack of updates. Life has been quite busy for me for a while. Anyway I´m here again to continue this story, so I hope you like it. **

**You might find the characters a little OOC, especially Flynn since he´s not exactly the dashing thief that appears in the movie. But don´t worry, he´s still his usual charming self.**

**Btw thanks a lot to the ones who reviewed, followed and made this story one of their favorites, it really means a lot to me!**

**The song for this chapter is "Love Somebody" by Maroon 5**

**Disclaimer: nope I don't own Tangled. **

**xoxoxoxoxo**

**Rapunzel POV**

_Oh please, please, please just shut up! _It was hard to think like that when it came to the woman I loved like my second mother, but honestly, I was not a little girl anymore! I was perfectly capable of taking care of myself, and of course, knowing who I could trust and who not!

I was just tired of hearing Mother Gothel complain about how I was too young and innocent and naïve to even know who was good enough for me and who not. And then the stupid speech of how people out there are dangerous and treasonous and you just can´t trust them. And of course, her favorite part, how Eugene was just playing with me, and that he was only going to hurt me in the end. Because that´s what people like him do. Just wanting to have money and live the good life that they can´t afford.

Of course, I didn't believe her one bit. I wasn't naïve. I was pretty capable of taking care of myself. And people weren't that bad, like she always liked to describe ever since I was a little girl living in the tower. And Eugene was definitely not a bad person.

So, after five minutes of hearing her incessant complains, I just tuned her off, not really paying attention to her anymore and instead focusing on how I was going to dress and do my hair.

I found in my wardrobe a pretty lavender dress, with short sleeves and a comfortable skirt, perfect for a day outside. I changed quickly, while Mother Gothel kept talking, glancing at herself in my vanity mirror, checking for any wrinkles or imperfections in her face.

Next I redo my hair in a slightly different complicated braid that hung to the side, over my left shoulder. And after I was satisfied with my look, I turned to look at Pascal for approval. He nodded slightly and smiled. Perfect. Now I was ready to go.

I turned around and approached Mother Gothel, who was still talking as if I was actually paying attention.

"Well, goodbye mother. See you later!" I gave her a quick hug and a peck on the cheek. For a moment she looked baffled, but then she glared at me annoyingly.

"Are you actually going out with him? After all my warnings!"

Honestly, what was her problem with Eugene? "It´s okay mother. He is a good guy, I´ll be fine." I said dismissively as I approached the door.

"Fine! Go and get in trouble. But one day Rapunzel, one day you´ll realize that all that time that you spend with him isn't worth it. That boy will never be good for you, and he will just hurt you, one way or another. And don't say I didn't warn you."

_Yeah, yeah, whatever… _"Okay mother. Bye!" I said as I waved at her and left my room, heading to the main entrance of the castle and to the courtyard. I was so excited to see Eugene again. I hoped he felt like that too.

**xoxoxoxoxo**

**Flynn POV**

I kept glancing at the clock in the corner of the room. It was already midday. She probably was going to be here in any minute now.

I started cleaning my stuff and work area while I waited. After I tidied my tools and the small wooden table where I was working, I went to the right corner of the room, where I kept a small vase full of fresh water.

I cupped some cold water in my hands and splashed my face with it, trying to get rid of the dust and ashes that covered my face and hands from working near the fire in the smithy.

Yup, working as a blacksmith was a hard and tiring job, but it kept me busy, and Mr. Fennex, my boss, said I always did a wonderful job. He didn't pay me much, but it was enough for me to live. I even shared a small cottage in town with an old friend from the orphanage, Tom. We were about the same age, and we helped each other with the bills paying equal parts. The only problem was that he was going to get married soon, and obviously, he was going to move to another place. But I could deal with it. Mr. Fennex promised to increase my pay if I worked hard this month, which I did.

My life was definitely not what I had expected. When I was a child I always dreamed of living a life full of adventures. Like the ones I read in my favorite book. I wished I could go and explore new places, travel around the world, fight dangerous villains, and even own a castle and have a lot of money.

But I had a little problem. To achieve my dreams, I needed money, which I hadn't. I once considered becoming a thief. I would live on the run, travelling and visiting new places, staying there just a few days before going to explore a new place.

But sweet, innocent Rapunzel didn´t like the idea. She said that we would never see each other again, because I would be too busy running and hiding from the guards, and besides, I couldn't just leave her with her boring life in the castle. After she said this, and a lot of time convincing me to have a good descent job, she helped me find this one.

Yeah, my life was normal and descent and the people in the kingdom definitely didn't hate me for stealing their things. So I guess it was okay. Even so, I still felt like something was missing. Like my life wasn't complete. The problem was I didn't know exactly why.

After I washed my hands and dried my face with a clean cloth, I went to the other side of the room. There was a small wooden cabinet where I kept my working material, tools and stuff. I opened one of the drawers, and took out the little velvet box that I had kept hidden there for a few weeks already.

I opened it to reveal a beautiful gold bracelet, with a golden, heart-shaped pendant with the words _"best friends" _engraved in a beautiful manuscript, and at the top of it, were two little embedded diamonds. It was simple, but beautiful, the kind of things that Rapunzel liked. She didn't like fancy, extravagant things that reminded her of her life in the castle. Besides, I couldn't afford anything more expensive than this. I had been saving money for months and I barely managed to buy it.

But I was sure she would like it. And it was worth it. After all, it was her eighteenth birthday. I had to give her something special.

"That is a very beautiful bracelet." I jumped a little in surprise, and turned to look at Mr. Fennex standing right behind me.

He was an old man. He wasn't short, but neither tall. His dark, grey hair now replaced his once dark locks. He had a big, grey mustache, and little bright brown eyes, hidden behind his half-moon glasses. He had a very kind expression, and always liked to help other people.

"Yeah, I hope so. It cost me three months of hard work."

"I suppose the princess is worth it." said Mr. Fennex with a knowing look on his face.

I admit I was a little unsettled. "H-how did you know…"

"Oh boy, it doesn't take a genius to see the special relationship that you and the princess share." He cut me off.

Oh no, not again. "How many times do I have to tell you? We are just friends!" I said a little annoyed. Why must everyone in this kingdom think that just because Rapunzel and I spent a lot of time together meant that we were a couple?

"Yeah, sure… everyone in town thinks that you two are eventually going to get married secretly and elope." He said with a teasing smile. Apparently, yes. Everyone thought that.

"Well, I´m telling you now. We are just friends and nothing more." I said stubbornly.

"Eugene, my boy, you honestly expect me to believe that you two are just friends and nothing more, but you still spent three months saving your money and working extra shifts just to be able to buy her that bracelet?"

"Well, yes. She´s the princess and it is her eighteenth birthday, she deserved something special." I said, growing more annoyed by the minute. It was pretty normal that I had done that for my best friend, right?

"Hmm, I´m sure she would´ve appreciated more a declaration of love. It´s about time you two start making it official."

Okay, now that was enough. "What do you mean?" I said I little more rudely than I intended. There was nothing to make official. Me and Rapunzel had nothing to make official. And I definitely wasn't going to declare my love for her as a birthday present. Not that I loved her in that way obviously… or at least that was what I tried to reassure myself every day.

"For goodness sake boy, that girl is head over heels for you! Well, most of the young girls in this town are… but anyway that´s beside the point. The princess is obviously in love with you, and you don't even notice!" he said as he patted me on the shoulder. "You should really open your eyes, Eugene. She´s not going to wait forever." And with that he left the room, leaving me alone with my own thoughts, and to let the words he had just said really sink in.

Rapunzel loved me? No way! She would´ve let me know by now, wouldn't she? Besides, we were just best friends. And our relationship would never work. We were from different worlds. She was a princess. She was destined to marry a prince, someone of her same social class. And I was just a poor orphan, without a past, and without a future. What could I offer her? Exactly, nothing.

I really didn't need Mr. Fennex to come and tell me that, I already had a bad time thinking about it myself.

It´s not that I didn't like Rapunzel, in fact, she was a beautiful young girl and I had always found her rather pretty, and I liked her personality too, soft and gentle, yet stubborn and confident. She was just the perfect girl, and everybody could see that. The thing is… that I found myself really liking her, like… liking her not just as my best friend, but as the young, beautiful woman that she had become.

But that was completely and definitely wrong. I couldn't have those kinds of feelings for her. We were not meant to be together. Besides, she probably already had an arranged marriage planned for her. And she really hated the fact that she always knew she would have to marry a prince and become a queen. That was why I could never encourage her to have a love relationship with me, or anyone else who was not royalty for that matter.

It was not right for us, that´s why I only wanted us to remain friends. Falling in love with her and develop stronger feelings for her would only hurt me in the end, and probably her too. It was better to stop when you still could, when the feelings were small enough to forget easily. So I did the right thing to do. I tried not to think about it and tried so hard to deny it. It was the best for both of us, because either way, we were never going to be together.

I was so wrapped up in my thoughts that I didn't notice someone entering the smithy. The door opened and close without me noticing, and I probably would have still been oblivious to the fact that a person was there if I hadn't felt a pair of tiny soft hands covering my eyes playfully, from behind me.

"Guess who?" said a giggling sweet voice from behind me. I grinned as I immediately recognized it. I would recognize that voice anywhere.

I chuckled slightly. "Oh I don't know… a crazy hyperactive young girl who is about to turn eighteen maybe…?" I said teasingly.

"Hey!" she said as she smacked me playfully, she dropped her hands from my eyes and allowed me to see again. I turned around to see her pouting face and angry glare. It was cuter than it was threatening, so it just made me laugh in her face.

"It´s not funny." She said, trying to sound serious and angry, but a hint of a smile appeared in her face, which was a huge give away.

I smiled warmly at her. "Aw c´mon, you can´t be mad at your best friend, whom you haven't seen in four days by the way." I said as I shoved her playfully.

"Yeah I can, because my best friend just happens to be a jerk." She said with a fake angry scowl and stubborn expression.

"Fine… then you won´t get your birthday present…" I said while I shoved the black velvet box in my pocket.

Her face seemed to change completely to one of shock and disbelief, and a hint of… was it annoyance? "You bought me a present?! Eugene I told you not to buy me anything this year!" she said indignantly. You would think that a girl would be grateful that her best friend had bought her a special present for her birthday, but Rapunzel was not a typical girl. She was so selfless that she was more worried about me spending my money than her getting a birthday present.

"But Blondie, you turn eighteen tomorrow! I had to get you something special." I said trying to make her understand. But she was as stubborn as I was which is saying a lot. She would tell me to not buy her a present and I would still do it anyway, no matter how many explanations she gave me as to why I didn't have to. But now she probably would not even accept it. Well, two can play that game.

"But of course if you don't want it… I may have to go find another young pretty girl who might accept this, instead of you…" I said teasingly. Rapunzel´s face seemed to change once again. She tried to make it appear completely calm and indifferent, but I knew her, maybe even better that she knew herself. I still could see a hint of anger and jealousy.

"Yeah, probably every single girl in the kingdom, seeing as you have every one of them swooning at your feet." She said bitterly. Yeah, I knew she would react this way. Rapunzel always seemed to get slightly jealous and annoyed whenever I mentioned the young women at town who seemed to admire me like I was some Greek God. I don´t know if it was because it seriously affected her, or because she thought I changed my usual behavior to arrogant and cocky, either way this seemed to annoy her pretty much, which meant my plan was working. I knew that after I mentioned it, she would accept my present. She was too pride to reject it, now that I had mentioned that I would give it to another girl.

"Yeah, I know. I will probably have to give it to the first pretty girl that passes by, which is a shame because I bought this little thing…" I said as I took out the black velvet box and opened it, revealing the beautiful bracelet. "…specially for a certain blonde princess, with freakishly long hair and huge green eyes… which so happens to be in front of me."

Rapunzel´s eyes widened, becoming impossibly larger than they already were, and she gasped in surprise. "Eugene!" she whispered in awe. "You didn't have to…"

"Oh shush Rapunzel. We´ve been over this a thousand times." I cut her off because I knew exactly what she was going to say.

"It´s… it´s beautiful, thank you!" she squealed in delight and threw her petite arms around my neck and hugged me tightly. But then she seemed to realize that something was wrong, because she quickly let go and looked seriously into my eyes.

"But… I can´t possibly accept this, Eugene. It must have cost you a lot!" she exclaimed, horrified by the thought that I had spent a lot of money in her present.

"Rapunzel." I said sternly.

"But…"

"No."

"But you…"

"Rapunzel, don't."

"But I can´t…"

"Rapunzel!" I snapped. "I already bought it, Blondie, so the fact that you don't accept my gift for you will not change anything. If anything, it would be worse, because then I spent my money for nothing!" I said trying to convince her to just accept the bracelet already.

Rapunzel sighed in defeat, but then she smiled sweetly at me. "Thank you." She whispered as she stood on her tiptoes and planted a soft kiss on my cheek. I tried to hide the blush that was beginning to creep up my cheeks. Oh God why was I even blushing?! Rapunzel was the only girl who managed to make me nervous.

I shifted uncomfortably in my place as I watched her inspect the small bracelet intently, with an expression of pure joy and happiness in her face. "Aw Eugene, it´s so beautiful! Thank you so much." She exclaimed again as she gave me a grateful smile.

"Happy birthday Blondie!" I said cheerfully as I hugged her tightly, in a friendly way, of course.

Rapunzel giggled in my embrace. "But my birthday is tomorrow." She said as we pulled apart.

"Yeah, but every year you spend it with your parents and you´re so busy that you never have time to see me. So I guess I had to tell you now."

She seemed to have forgotten about the fact that we were never able to see each other in her birthday, because a look of realization hit her and her happy smile broke into a sad frown. "Oh, right. I had forgotten about it." she murmured sadly.

"Hey, don't worry about it. We´ll see each other again the day after tomorrow." I said soothingly. "Besides, it´s your birthday! You always enjoy it."

"Yeah, but sometimes I wish I could join you in the festival at town. I´d rather do that than spend the whole day preparing for the ridiculous fancy ball that my parents throw every year for my birthday." She said bitterly. "I have to fake I´m enjoying every minute of it, talk with the snooty royals and dance with every single prince that asks me to dance with him."

"It´s so much more fun at the festival. You get to do whatever you want, enjoy the day however you want, and dance at the towns square with whoever you want. And the floating lanterns look much prettier from down here!" she complained loudly. It honestly made me chuckle. She always wanted what she couldn't have.

"Oh c´mon it can´t be that bad. Most girls in the kingdom would do anything to go to that fancy ball that you so much hate." I said matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, because they don´t know how it really is. I wish it was like fairytales, and I could spend the whole night dancing with the guy of my dreams, which conveniently is a prince too." She said dreamily, while I gave her a strange look. Rapunzel had never been one for liking fairytales. What was up with her? But she continued speaking, ignoring my curious gaze.

"Instead I have to dance with complete strangers." She whined like a little girl.

I snorted. "Yeah… tell me about it…" I said as I recalled all the times that random girls dragged me to the towns square, where the small band usually played and danced with me the whole day if they could. Not that I was actually complaining about it, but sometimes it just got disturbing. I didn't even know most of them.

"I just wish I could have a normal life, like all the other girls, you know? Do whatever I want, date whoever I want without him having to be part of royalty." She sighed as she sat down on the old wooden chair next to my desk.

"Yeah, I wish that too…" I found myself muttering under my breath before I could help myself. I gasped and covered my mouth with my hand as if I had said something horrible, which probably I did. Luckily she didn't seem to notice, as she was too busy complaining about her own problems.

"All the other girls have such an easy life."

"Yeah, because working hard everyday to live is every girl's wish." I said sarcastically.

"No, I didn't mean that. I mean, they don't have the responsibility of ruling a kingdom. Like Valerie, the florist´s daughter! She just has to help her mother water the flowers and help her father sell them at their stall in town, _and_ she´s dating William. He´s such a good guy and he is handsome too. I tell you, she has the perfect life."

I tried not to get jealous by the comment. I was a good guy too, and much more attractive than William!

_What did I just think?! Stop it, Eugene you´re making no sense. _I scolded myself. _And I´m definitely NOT jealous._

"Err, no Blondie, they´re no longer dating." I said vaguely.

"What? But… I saw them together less than a month ago!" she exclaimed, surprised by the new information.

"Apparently, they needed their time off to think things, or some stuff like that…" I said, waving my hand in a dismissive gesture.

"Oh what a shame… they made such a good couple… but wait, how do you know all this?" she asked curiously.

And suddenly, I froze on my spot. "Um… because Valerie told me." I said shifting nervously.

"And since when are you friends with Valerie?" she asked suspiciously, quirking an eyebrow.

"Well… I wouldn't exactly call it a friendship…" I tried to avoid the question.

Rapunzel´s eyes widened and she gasped in realization. "Are you both dating?!"

"What?"

Her eyes narrowed at my response. "Don't avoid the question Eugene. Are you dating her?"

"No, I´m not!" I said defensively. "We just went out a few times, nothing serious, really. It didn't even last a week."

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked a little hurt.

"I didn't think it was necessary. It was nothing serious." I tried to explain myself. But honestly I didn't even know why. Her annoyed reaction wasn't something I was expecting. In fact, the reason I had been reluctant to tell her was because I was sure she would tease me endlessly.

"Dating someone IS serious Eugene!" she exclaimed, and for some odd reason, I could see a deep feeling of hurt and betrayal flicker in her bright green eyes.

"God, Rapunzel I never dated her! We just went out a few times, it was less than a week and nothing happened. It was nothing serious that you needed to know about." I could feel myself getting annoyed by her reproachful attitude. Honestly, it was not like I was suddenly going to get married and I never told her.

"But it was something. A sort of relationship that you had with her, and it could´ve been more, but you never take those things seriously." She said accusingly.

"What do you mean?" I asked a little defensively.

"That you never take any relationship seriously! You never refer to the girls that you have shown any interest in or have gone out with, as your girlfriend. "

"Because I´ve never had one Rapunzel!" I said matter-of-factly. "I´ve never wanted a serious relationship with anyone, and you know it!" I exclaimed. And she did know it. I had explained my reasons to her many times in the past, and it was too painful to bring up the subject again. I knew that we were on the verge of a very bad argument. This rarely occurred between us, since we agreed with each other most of the time. I really didn't understand why she had to pick this very moment to start one. We were supposed to enjoy this day!

"That´s because you´re just too stubborn to accept one! What is so bad about love, Eugene, that you can´t even seem to think about it? You´ve never let anyone get emotionally close to you. You´ve never let anyone love you, or care for you the way you deserve. And most importantly, you´ve never let yourself truly love anyone." She said. Her voice softening with each word until the last part was almost a whisper.

That´s not entirely truth. Sure, I had never let anyone get close to me, or loved anyone that way. I had learned that love can only hurt people beyond repair, because when you lose someone you love dearly, there´s no way in life you can recover from that kind of pain and loss. Yes, I learnt that from a very young age. When I lost my family I lost everything I had, both my parents and my sister. It had been a horrible experience. I was only five when the pirate attack to the kingdom happened. We lived near the coast, by the docks, where we had a beautiful sight of the sea and the boats arriving and leaving the kingdom.

I remember hearing the canons, the screams of people, my father telling my mother to stay inside the house while he went to help the people outside. I remember the way the house trembled, with the huge explosion of a canon hitting the side of it, the flames immediately engulfing most part of the place I had called home for my whole life. I remember the screams of my mother, telling me to get out while she went for my little sister, who was crying upstairs, screaming for help. I still remember perfectly well, how when I got out of the burning house, it collapsed to the ground in flames. How I screamed for help, but no one listened, everyone was too busy trying to protect themselves of the attack. How the palace guards had to take me away from the burning remains and ashes of what used to be my home, and took me to the towns orphanage. How in my naïve young age, I kept waiting for my mom and dad to come for me, but they never did. I never saw any of them again.

Since then, I swore to never love someone as dearly as I had loved my family, because once you lose them, you can never replace them, never get rid of the feeling of emptiness in your life, or fill the gaping hole that they left in your heart.

But once I met Rapunzel, I had troubles keeping that promise. From all the people I´d known since the terrible death of my family, Rapunzel was the only one who had managed to get closer to me than anyone else. Her kind nature and sweet attitude made my walls break and she immediately had a special place in my cold and broken heart, as much as I tried to deny it to myself at first. She was the only one who I really trusted entirely, the only one who knew almost all my secrets and deepest fears. The only person in the world who I actually loved and cared for, whether it was brotherly love or something more, I didn't know, but I sure loved her with all my heart. And that scared me out of my mind.

She was just another prove that love hurt terribly. I loved her, I cared for her as my best friend, as my partner in all my greatest adventures (which weren´t a lot for that matter), as my own sister, and even though I tried so hard to deny it, maybe even as something more. But we would not be together forever and I knew it. She was a princess, I was a poor orphan. She had so many things to take care of, while I barely knew what to do with my life. She had a perfect future as Queen of Corona, and I just didn't have a future at all. We were from different worlds, came from different lives, and as much as she tried to convince me and the entire world that it didn't mattered, it did. And it hurt to know that someday, I would not wake up to the illusion of seeing her sweet smile or hearing her perfect voice.

"You know why I don't want to." Was my reply to her. It almost came out as a whisper, a whisper of defeat.

She came closer to me, and gently took hold of my hand, squeezing it softly. "You can´t be alone forever Eugene. What about love? What about spending the rest of your life with the only person you truly love and that you can´t live without? What about forming a family of your own and living happy? You can´t keep living in the past. I know it was painful, I know it hurt, but don't you think this is not what they would want for you? You deserve to be happy Eugene. You deserve a chance in love." She said as she stroke my cheek tenderly with her free hand. I took a shaky breath, trying to control all the emotions that thinking about the past and my family brought. Trying to hold back a few tears that had stubbornly welled up in my eyes. I was NOT going to cry.

I knew she was right. I knew that was what my family would want for me, and I knew that it was what she wanted for me. But I had just a little problem. The only person that I pictured myself with in the future, holding her in my arms, making her the happiest woman on earth, calling her my wife and spending the rest of my life with her, was the only woman out of my reach.

Rapunzel was a wish that I couldn't dare to dream of. It was impossible and it could never be. And as she smiled at me with those emerald eyes sparkling with love and affection, I felt a tiny bit of my heart break, at the thought that one day, she would be giving that same smile to someone else.

A future together was impossible, and I knew it. That´s why I just had to stop thinking about her like that, I had to stop myself before I truly fell for her, because if that ever happened, I would never be able to recover. I would never be able to forget, and I would never be able to live without her.

I just hoped it wasn't too late.

**xoxoxoxoxoxo**

**So… what do you think? Like it? Yes? Then please let me know by clicking that little button that says "review"! I would love to hear what you guys think :D**

**Also, what´s your opinion about Eugene´s big dilemma? Think he will ever admit to himself that he does love her? Or more importantly, that he will admit to Rapunzel his true feelings for her? I honestly don't know, he´s quite stubborn… what do you think? **

**If you review I may or may not tell you in the next chapter… just saying… ;)**

**Hope you liked it guys! I will update as soon as possible. **


	5. Love Potion

**Chapter 5: Love Potion**

**Hello there! I´m really sorry I didn't update sooner, my computer stopped working and while it was being repaired, I couldn't write anything. But here I am with a new chapter, and a really big surprise! Hope you like it.**

**Thanks to all the people who have reviewed, favorite and followed this story! It really means a lot to me. **

**Note: the rating has changed from K+ to T for language. **

**Special note to HannahBerrie: I´ve found a way to include your great idea in the story, but you won´t be seeing it for a while. First I have a few chapters to write before the great ball for Rapunzel´s birthday. Hope you keep giving me your thoughts and opinions :) **

**Songs for this chapter: "Hey Stephen" and "I´d Lie" both by Taylor Swift. **

**Disclaimer: I DON'T own Tangled. It all belongs to Disney, sadly. **

**Xoxoxo**

I've known Eugene for almost ten years. Ten years of friendship, of understanding, of sharing secrets, of knowing our deepest fears, ten years full of trust and honesty, yet I knew little about how much Eugene had truly suffered throughout his childhood.

I mean, sure he had told me about his parents' tragical dead, and how his life had been in the orphanage, but I knew I could never be able to understand what he had been through, I imagined it must have been horrible, seeing as he rarely talked about it, and when he did, he would avoid details and then abruptly change topic, that's why I rarely bring up the subject. And now I felt extremely guilty.

I had been the one who reminded him of it after all. What the hell was I thinking?!

I tried to stop myself from doing it but for some reason I really lost it. I mean, why he had to be so stubborn about having a real, serious relationship with someone. Preferably me, of course, but I wasn't going to tell him that, and anyway in the end it didn't matter as long as he was happy.

But NO! He had to have this enormous fear of getting emotionally attached to someone. Partly the fear of commitment and partly the fear of getting hurt. I knew all of this of course, even though he would never say it out loud. He always tried to appear strong and carefree. But deep down I knew he was totally scared out of his mind about having a relationship.

And then there was the fact that I got extremely jealous. He was partially dating Valerie, not me (though that didn't matter as long as he was happy), without telling me, his best friend (and probably something more if he wasn't so damn daft), and he WASN'T planning on telling me at all! I mean there was no reason for him to not tell me! He could be getting married with her at this very instant and I wouldn't even know because he doesn't give a damn about my feelings for him and the fact that I would have been absolutely heartbroken!

Okay maybe I was overreacting, but seriously, why was he going out with Valerie anyway! She's not that pretty, and she's just the florist's daughter. I am the princess of Corona for crying out loud! Why did he prefer her over me? What did she have that I didn't?

Okay that sounded so awful and selfish. _'IT DOESN'T MATTER AS LONG AS HE IS HAPPY.'_ I kept telling myself, but it was so hard restraining myself from giving him a very well deserved smack in the head and then going to slap that Valerie.

'_Oh stop it Rapunzel!'_ I scolded myself.

I was shaken out of my thoughts when I heard Eugene clearing his throat, shifting from foot to foot uncomfortably. "Well, never mind let's just forget this ever happened alright? I wasn't planning on discussing the whole day, there are a lot of things that we could be doing right now. C'mon let's go." He said as he took my hand and guided me out of the smithy. He was right; I should forget all of this. Like he said, it's not like he had anything serious with Valerie. Oh I honestly hoped so.

The sun outside was shining brightly in the clear cloudless sky. It was a perfect day for being outside and enjoying the weather. The people in the village seemed happy, doing their duties like always, with a satisfied smile on their faces. Kids were running and playing around the big fountain in the middle of the town´s center, surrounded by shops and stalls, with vendors selling all kinds of goods while mothers did their usual shopping while keeping an eye on their happy children, and there was a group of young women near the smithy, smiling and giggling, battling their eyelashes flirtatiously while waving at Eugene. Ah, what a perfect day for- wait what?!

I did a double take and yes, there was this group of girls, seven or eight, they appeared to be in their early twenties, with beautiful faces and curvy bodies. I looked over at Eugene who, as always, waved back at them with a charming arrogant smirk on his face. What a git. I thought angrily as I kept walking with an angry uncharacteristic scowl. Great this day kept getting better and better.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Eugene sprinting to catch up with me, though it seemed a little difficult for him considering I was already far ahead. He finally managed to catch me, walking silently by my side as he eyed me curiously, while I pointedly avoided his gaze.

"You're not still angry are you?" He asked curiously. "Oh c'mon Blondie, I told you already there was no need for me to tell you! Look, if I told you every time I went out with someone you probably would be so tired of it that you wouldn't even want to hang out with me. You would probably even slap me so I would shut up."

Yes, probably...

"Besides, I would have to tell you the same thing every two days, considering I have plenty of girls dying to go out with me, I can't possibly disappoint them, can I?" He said smugly.

PERFECT, JUST BLOODY PERFECT! What was he trying to tell me, that he went out with someone different every two days?! I resisted the urge to just leave him talking to himself and go back to the castle, and settled with just glaring daggers at him.

"Okay, that didn't come out as I planned... But what I'm trying to tell you is that-"

"Yes, yes, you don't give a damn about the girls that you go out with and they're not important to you. I get it. But it isn't doing anything to help your situation, you jerk." I said dryly

"I-I just uh... I didn't- oh screw it, forget I said anything. Just remember the little bracelet, isn't it beautiful? It represents the ten years of friendship that we've had. You wouldn't want to lose that just because of a pointless discussion, now would you?" He said almost pleadingly. I stopped walking and crossed my arms over my chest. He almost crashed over me at my abrupt stop.

I sighed heavily and looked at him and his pleading almost childlike look on his face, with wide puppy eyes and a small pout. It was so cute I couldn't help the soft smile that crept up in my lips. "Alright, I'll just pretend this whole mess never happened. Let's just go and have fun. It's not always that I have the time to go out the whole day without any duties back at the castle." I said as I dragged him enthusiastically to the sea shore. My usual good mood returning as I tried to forget everything that had made me so mad. "Let's go to the docks, I love to watch the sea, maybe we could rent a boat!"

**Xoxoxoxox**

**Third POV **

A dark figure crept up from the corner of an alley. It was tall and slim; a dark cloak covered its face. But there were still parts of her dark red dress visible, and also a few locks of curly black hair came lose for the hood that was covering her entire face. She watched with furious steel eyes as the young pair walked happily hand in hand through the town, careless, happy, and free. Most people would think that they were a young couple, lovers enjoying the beauty of the day outside, while they kept glancing at each other, whispering sweet nothings in each other's ears. They looked perfectly normal, just another couple in love, nothing out of the ordinary. But Gothel knew better.

Those two, were anything but normal. The young girl with the freakishly long golden hair was none other than the princess of Corona. Kind, sweet, innocent and loving, always offering a cute smile at the people that loved her, the people that one they she would reign over. And at her right was the most handsome young bachelor in the kingdom, or so many people said. Charming and attractive, with a kind heart and good natured attitude. Most said he was hard to tame, never seen with the same girl for more than three days, but still being able to charm his way with almost everyone throughout the kingdom. Almost.

Gothel knew those two were not a couple, they were not simple ordinary lovers enjoying the day, they were nothing but two little hypocrites trying to hide their true feelings for each other. Nothing but best friends. Nothing romantic between them, yet.

The girl, enthusiastic and full of joy, was deeply and hopelessly in love with the young man walking by her side, though she would never tell anyone. But Gothel could see behind her mask. She knew it, it was obvious. As clear as water. And most people in the kingdom could see that too.

The man, carefree and usually friendly, was not what most people thought him to be. Even though he appeared to be an eternal bachelor, changing girls like he changed clothes, he was not that hard to tame. In fact, he had already been, maybe a long time before he realized it. And the only woman who possessed the key to his distant and constantly guarded heart, was the girl walking along him. Though he obviously tried to deny it.

Yes, Gothel knew all of this, she could see right through their masks, unlike other people. She could see the way they looked at each other, the way they talked to each other, the way they laughed together. Even though neither one of them knew about each other's feelings. But it was a matter of time before they realized it, only three words separating the actual reality from the fatal fate that awaited. And Gothel didn't like it. No, she didn't like it one bit.

She had been trying to prevent that godforsaken friendship since the beginning. She had tried to warn Rapunzel about the dangers of trusting people, tried to inflict fear in her of ever going out and meeting anyone, but it had proven extremely difficult since the girl was no longer a prisoner in the tower. She was free to do whatever she liked, even if Gothel totally disapproved of it. It would have been a lot easier if they just had stayed in that tower in the middle of the forest, if Gothel's plan of escape hadn't failed, if she had been able to take the young girl out, far away. If the guards hadn't stopped them, ruining all of Gothel's plans.

As soon as she had realized that the palace guards had been searching for the lost princess so dangerously close to the location of the tower, Gothel knew she had to go and take the girl as soon as possible. It wasn't safe there anymore. Sooner or later they would discover the tower and the secrets that laid inside it. She had planned to go, leave as soon as possible, take Rapunzel far away from the kingdom, far away from the castle, far away from her parents, and hide her in some other remote isolated place for the rest of her miserable life. But those stupid guards had to step on and ruin everything. She had been lucky the foolish King and Queen had believed her story and hadn't hanged her right then and there. But now she had an even bigger problem. And it all had to do with a certain young arrogant pigheaded git. The bane of her existence, the person that Gothel hated more than anyone else, the reason for Rapunzel's endless curiosity, making her want to learn more than what was acceptable. The reason why Rapunzel sometimes questioned Gothel. That goddamned Eugene Fitzherbert.

That boy was too clever and smart for his own good. He had always been sceptic of her since the beginning. He probably had already noticed her strange protectiveness for Rapunzel or rather, her rare magical hair. And she was sure he had noticed her strange obsession with the princess' hair too. Gothel was almost certain that Rapunzel had been stupid enough to tell Eugene their deepest secret. The power of her hair. And ever since then the young man had been watching her carefully, probably trying to decipher why she was so protective with Rapunzel, and surely not trusting her with the version that she had given to the monarchs about how she came up with a baby Rapunzel all those years ago. He suspected something, and sooner or later his cunning instincts would find out the truth, and if he knew the truth, Rapunzel would too. And that would be just fatal.

She couldn't let him make Rapunzel turn against her. She knew that every day Rapunzel was more observant of Gothel's attitude, sometimes asking why she cared so much for the safety and protection of her magical hair. And she knew very well that Eugene had voiced his suspicions more than once to the young princess, making the now not so naive girl doubt Gothel's intentions. And she couldn't let this keep going any farther. She needed that friendship to end, she needed to separate them as soon as possible, and she knew exactly how.

She needed Rapunzel to feel hurt, damaged beyond repair, heartbroken, to the point that she would feel an immense pain just by seeing Eugene Fitzherbert.

And she definitely needed that boy to stop loving her, to feel indifferent towards her. To completely ignore her and stop caring about her altogether. That way he wouldn't try to make Rapunzel feel any better. And he would just draw her away, banishing her from his life. That was what needed to happen. The question was how she was going to make it happen.

There was just one thing that could make Rapunzel feel that way, and that could make Eugene lose interest in her as well. The only way something like that could happen was if Eugene fell in love with someone else. That would be a very difficult task if Gothel didn't know any better. But she had something that would assure that would happen. All she needed was the second part of her plan.

As she was thinking about it, she heard a group of young women talking animatedly near her. They were beautiful, all of them, but there was one specifically that was far more beautiful than the rest of them, with long platinum blond hair, that fell all the way down to her waist in beautiful soft waves. Her eyes were a gorgeous aqua shade, a combination of sky-blue and light green, making them look just like the most beautiful waters of a sea. She was slim and quite tall, her long fit dress complimented the curves that accentuated her hips and chest, and also match her strikingly beautiful eyes. Indeed, she was very beautiful, but that was not what Gothel was interested in. What caught her attention was the conversation that said young woman was having with the other girls.

"Honestly, I don't get why he spends so much time with her! I mean it's not like they were going out!" She exclaimed angrily, throwing her arms up in a gesture of frustration.

"Well they do look like they were dating if you ask me." Said another girl by her side, this one with shoulder-length dark brown hair and soft hazel eyes. "Though I wouldn't mind that much, they actually look cute together, I think they would make an adorable couple." She said with a dreamy sigh. All the other girls turned to look at her like she had gone mad. "Well, maybe not." She muttered softly.

"Anyway, why does he even hang out with her? I don't understand what he sees in her, I mean, yeah she's pretty beautiful, I accept it, and she's a princess and she's rich and everything, but really there is no reason for him to follow her around like a lost puppy. She can't give him what he needs." Said the blonde beauty.

"And what would that be?" Asked another one of the young women, with long silky black hair and pale blue eyes.

"Well, he obviously needs a woman, not a naive teenage girl! He needs someone who can satisfy him, someone who treats him like the man he is, and not like just another friend, someone who can be his proper lover, someone who KNOWS exactly what he needs." She explained in a rush. "The little princess is obviously not the girl for him, she could never be able to be the woman he needs. She's too naive and childish for him. Still, he spends time with her like she was actually his girlfriend." She finished bitterly.

"Oh and you suppose you could be that woman."

The platinum blonde grinned suggestively. "Maybe"

"Pff, good luck with that one." Snorted another one of the girls, instantly followed by many giggles and mutters of agreement. "The guy seems to only have eyes for the princess. The entire kingdom knows that sooner or later they are going to end up together. We can just hope to be one of his single-day dates before they start making it official."

"Oh please, the only reason that he is still with her is because they have been friends for as long as we can remember. That doesn't mean there can't be someone willing to outshine the princess. And I would be willing to do anything for him to look at me." Said the blonde girl with finality.

A wide grin spread across Gothel's face at this statement. Perfect! This was just what she needed.

"Well, you might be right. Maybe they are nothing and he is not really interested in her, I mean yeah, he does spend a lot of time with her, but he doesn't seem to be very interested in having a romantic relationship with her, does he?" Said the black haired woman with blue eyes. The other girls muttered their opinion.

"Or with anybody else for that matter." Another girl sighed heavily. "Let's face it, he has never settled down with anyone before and he's not about to do it now. Maybe he likes it that way. A life out of commitment."

"Nonsense. Just you wait girls, it might take time, but one day you will see me with him as my boyfriend." The blonde girl said resolutely.

Some girls laughed, others rolled their eyes, after that all of them muttered their goodbyes as everyone parted their own way to do whatever they needed to do. Gothel's smile widened at the priceless opportunity.

She crept out of the dark alley and caught up with the blonde girl. She seemed startled and quite scared by her presence.

"Excuse me darling, but I couldn't help overhearing your conversation with those women. Seems like you have a problem." Said Gothel with the sweetest kindest voice she could muster. But the young woman didn't seem interested in talking to her.

"I don't think it's any of your business."

"Well no it's not, but it might be of yours." Said Gothel nonchalantly.

"What do you mean?" Asked the girl slightly annoyed.

"I mean I can help you get what you want."

"No I don't think you can." Said the younger woman as she tried to get past her, not even bothering to look at her. Gothel was honestly losing her patience and politeness. This little brat was not going to treat her like that.

"You're not going to get that man's love on your own, girl." She said coolly. At this the blonde girl looked back with a cocked eyebrow, looking slightly curious. "We both know he won't be having any formal relationships for a long time. He's not interested in you in the slightest, and it's hard to get the attention of a man who is in love with someone else."

"What makes you think he's in love?" The girl snapped. Gothel had had enough. She was not going to be nice anymore.

"Are you blind, or you're just stupid? It's obvious that he has his whole attention in the princess, you foolish girl! The idea of trying to get him to fall for you is simply idiotic. Now if you don't want my help I best get going." Gothel snapped back as she started to walk away. She took two steps before the delicate voice of the woman reached her ears.

"Wait."

Gothel turned with a hidden smirk of triumph. She looked at the younger woman expectantly. After a few seconds of hesitation she answered. "What did you have in mind?"

"Well this will just work if you really are willing to do anything for his attention." Warned Gothel almost smiling in delight.

"I am." Said the girl with a determined look that pleased Gothel.

The older woman looked at her intently, almost examining every little detail of her, from her face to her personality. She needed to make sure she wasn't going to ruin her plans. "What's your name girl?" She said after a few minutes.

"Elizabeth. Elizabeth Johnson." Answered the blonde woman.

"Well Elizabeth, getting a man who already has his eyes on someone else to look at you the way you want is a very difficult task, almost impossible if said man is already in love, an even more so, if we are talking about the most attractive one in the entire kingdom. But fortunately for you, I know exactly how to do it successfully." Said Gothel grinning widely, almost evilly. She reached into the pocket of her cloak and took out a small vial, full with a dark pinkish glowing liquid. The young woman in front of her gasped as Gothel handed her the vial with the strange liquid.

"W-what's this?" Elizabeth exclaimed as she eyed de crystal vial warily.

"It's a love potion. Once you give it to the person you want, it will immediately make said person fall helplessly in love with you."

Elizabeth snorted. "Yes of course. Who are you trying to trick?" She said disbelievingly.

"You don't want it? Fine, give it back." Said Gothel nonchalantly.

"I never said I didn't want it." Elizabeth exclaimed quickly.

"It does work. All you have to do is put the liquid in his drink. Once he drinks it, he will fall in love with you. Well, I have to tell you that it won't be real love. It will just be an illusion, more like an obsession. He will be blindly interested in you, in a way that will be almost obsessive, therefore he will appear to be in love with you." Explained Gothel, delighted at the hypnotized look in Elizabeth's face. She was looking at the glowing vial like it was the most precious thing in the world, holding it delicately in her hands like it would disappear in any moment.

But Gothel needed to convince her. "Think about it. If you want the entire female population to be jealous of your fortune, if you want the princess to be thrown out of the way, if you want him to have eyes only for you and look at you like you've always dreamed of, then take it. You just have one chance." Said Gothel tantalizingly, smiling evilly as she saw the small smile forming at the corners of Elizabeth's mouth.

**xoxoxoxo**

**Bam! You weren't expecting that were you? What do you think will happen now? Seems like we have big, big problems, now there are two people willing to separate our favorite couple! **

**Btw, I know Rapunzel is a lot OOC in this chapter, but let´s just consider that she is burning with jealousy. Even the cutest girl can be tough when she is jealous. Besides, writing a jealous Rapunzel was really fun, so I hope you like that new side of her as much as I did writing it. **

**Please don't hesitate to give me your thoughts and opinions about this. It really helps! Hope you liked it guys! **


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